Views From the Nation’s Press

The Chicago Tribune on how Congress is finally waking up to Big Tech’s failure to protect kids:

If any issue can bring notoriously polarized Washington together across party lines — and should — it is the need to protect America’s children from such perils as those to be found in abundance on the internet.

Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, openly expressed his delight as senators from both parties came together last week in a renewed push to pass federal protections for young people online.

“I don’t know if any or all of you realize what you witnessed today,” Durbin said during the session. “But this Judiciary Committee crosses the political spectrum, not just from Democrats to Republicans, but from real progressives to real conservatives. And what you heard was the unanimity of purpose.”

There also seemed to be a growing sense of urgency. Twentyfive years have passed since Congress last passed a law to protect children from the internet’s sexual exploitation, mental health challenges, questionable privacy policies and companies that target children to sell their data to advertisers ....

The consensus calling for action to corral Big Tech’s power has been growing for years and in both parties.

As the power and reach of online content has mushroomed, so have the harms and abuses. The desire to protect kids appears to be stronger than ever in the new Congress, which raises hopes that at least one law will actually get passed, perhaps aided by the heartfelt, often wrenching testimony by parents in the Senate hearing room . ...

Most Democrats and Republicans can’t even agree on whether Big Tech platforms moderate content too much or not enough. ... Let’s hope Congress has found new energy and fruitful reasons to seek a working consensus to help protect ... children.